Onlays and Crowns

Patient comfort is also very important. We want your experience to be pain-free and gentle. Some patients are more sensitive than others to dental treatment or have had an uncomfortable experience. But at The Center for Ideal Dentistry we pride ourselves in making every experience pain-free.

Crowns

A crown is a cosmetic restoration that completely covers the tooth. Dr. Hahn and Vittitow believe in avoiding crowns if at all possible in favor of a more conservative approach such as an onlay. While crowns are more aggressive restorations, they are still a treatment of choice at times when a tooth has previously had a crown or when the area of decay or the compromised tooth structure is too large for an onlay.

Crowns can be made from a number of different materials. The decision about materials will be based on where the tooth is in the mouth and the forces that the tooth must withstand. Our goal is always to achieve the most aesthetic results with the highest functionality.

Fillings or Onlays - A Conservative Approach

The most common restoration is a filling. Once the decay has been removed, we have several options to seal the tooth and fill in the lost area. Dr. Hahn and Vittitow do not use silver/mercury fillings at The Center for Ideal Dentistry because the new materials bond to the tooth better allowing us to conserve more tooth structure. These new materials seal the tooth and make it stronger.

Before	After
Before	After

If the area is larger, the preferred restoration is an onlay. An onlay enables us to save as much of the natural tooth structure as possible. We prepare the tooth for the permanent onlay. A dental lab fabricates the onlay and on a follow-up visit it is bonded into place. An onlay is a conservative approach yet restores the tooth to its natural beauty and strength.